


Lilies and Lace

by TheJudicator (EmperorsVornskr)



Series: Tumblr Prompts [8]
Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, First Meetings, Flirting, M/M, Nonbinary Ben Amidala, Senator Ben Amidala - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-24
Updated: 2020-04-24
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:33:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23823130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmperorsVornskr/pseuds/TheJudicator
Summary: A young Colonel Hux takes a stroll through the Royal Gardens of Naboo for some solitude after a long day of negotiations with politicians. His appreciation of the flowers is interrupted by another politician who is just as beautiful as the garden.
Relationships: Armitage Hux/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: Tumblr Prompts [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1677616
Comments: 4
Kudos: 48





	Lilies and Lace

**Author's Note:**

> A prompt for ira-fae, who asked: lace, plants, royalty do something with those words?

The gardens of the Theed Royal Palace were an incredible feast for the senses, and a true privilege to experience in person. Plants of all kinds- flowers, shrubs, trees, even some well controlled and groomed vines- were in full bloom.

The flowers were a riot of colour- the sanguine of the millaflowers, the soft purples of the rominaria and purple passions, the blues of the ryoo and blueblossoms, the soft dusky mauves of the musk-roses and asyr, and the yellows of the jebwa and sapflowers all cavorted in brilliant arrangement. Even the trees- many of which were the ornamental hydenock, the fragrant Shuura laden with ripening fruits, were boasting brightly coloured foliage. 

Throughout the gardens, in strategic places, were Tooke-traps - carnivorous plants that were used as natural pest control. In the water were the lovely, pungent poms floating on their wide buoyant leaves, and along the waterline grew the thick waxy woosha. 

Most of it was muted, as evening had already fallen on the gardens, but with the gentle lighting of the pathway’s garden lights, and the soft blue glow of the woosha, the garden had an ethereal quality. Despite the deepening dark of night, and the muting of colour from the moons’ light overhead, the perfume of the garden were still as strong and varied as ever, creating a bouquet of scent that could overwhelm those with a sensitive sense of smell - especially for a young First Order officer who’d spent most of his life on sterile starships. 

Colonel Armitage Hux had been on Naboo for less than a day and was already overwhelmed. He was there on one of his first assignments as a higher ranking officer, to make negotiations with the local politicians. After a full morning of tours, an afternoon of meetings, and a lavish dinner, Hux had simply needed silence, or at least, a modicum of solitude. He’d escaped to the gardens while his suite was being prepared, and was immediately captivated. 

He was enamoured as he wandered the grounds, and was glad the garden was practically empty, as he kept turning his head this way and that, trying to take in the sight of each plant. He’d never seen such a variety of colour. 

Arkanis, with all its rain, had been a constant environment of grey, dark green and brown- and that was most of what Hux remembered, having only been five when pulled from the planet. Everything else in his life had been drab or barren- his memory of the brief visit on Jakku was bright, but barren, mostly sand and empty skies. The majority of his life was spent on uniformly grey, sterile Star Destroyers. 

Fifteen years of living on environmentally controlled starships, however, had one side effect he should have expected, but didn’t consider when accepting the offer to visit the Royal Gardens. 

As he leaned forward to examine a gorgeous black lily, to admire the black petals shot through with deep red and purple lines so dark they were barely discernible from the black, he felt his sinuses burn, and a sneeze erupted from him. His eyes watered and itched, and he felt his nose begin to run. He sighed. 

“Of course. I finally see flowers- real flowers- for the first time, and I’m allergic to all of them,” he said in disappointment as he rummaged in his pocket for a handkerchief- and came up empty-handed. 

“Care to use mine?”

Hux jerked and turned to see a tall, elegantly dressed noble standing in the path. They wore a set of black silk robes trimmed with gold brocade, and a high sweeping collar that flared high behind their head, lined with bars of gold. Their black hair was thick and wavy, some of their tresses pulled back in artfully arranged braids that had gold threads woven into them. Their face was done up in white powder, red and gold eye shadow. The red dot on each cheek, the upper lip painted with red, and the full lower lip adorned with a single red stripe were all hallmarks of Naboo royalty. 

“I’m sorry?” Hux asked, unsure how to react- the noble was gorgeous, and Hux found his usual wit departing him. The noble smiled, and held out a white handkerchief. 

“You sneezed. Would you like to use my handkerchief, since you don’t seem to have one on your person?” they asked. 

Hux took the proffered cloth. It was very fine, trimmed in expensive, handmade Chandrilan lace- did this noble really expect him to wipe his nose with something so fine and obviously expensive? It had a name embroidered on it in glimmering ruby thread. Hux glanced at it- “Amidala.”

Amidala. The name of the very senator he was to be meeting the next morning. 

“You- are you Senator Amidala?” he asked, still not using the handkerchief, his eyes fixed on the other’s face. They smiled.

“I am. And you must be Colonel Hux from the First Order. I admit, I did not expect to meet you early- or here. Senator Ben Amidala, pleased to meet you.” 

They held out their hand, and Hux took it. Amidala’s hand was strong beneath the black silk glove, and their grip was firm. 

“Colonel Armitage Hux,” Hux confirmed. “It’s good to meet you, Senator Amidala.” 

“I am sorry your trip to the Royal Gardens resulted in allergies, Colonel. The gardens are one of my favourite places to visit to relax,” Amidala replied regretfully. 

“No need to apologise, I’ve spent most of my life on ships, I should have expected such an occurrence and taken an antihistamine. It doesn’t detract from my enjoyment of the plants. Even in the moonlight, I haven’t seen this much colour in my entire life,” Hux replied, his tone turning wistful. 

“Yet of all the flowers in such a spectrum of colour, I find you bent over a black lily,” Amidala observed, lifting an elegantly arched brow. 

“This one, it’s close to a light- I could see the nearly hidden colours in its petals. There’s purple and red barely visible in the black. Beauty concealed in darkness,” Hux replied, indicating the flower with a gloved hand. 

Amidala tilted their head, their plush, painted mouth curling in a small smile. Their brown eyes glittered, their pale skin glowed, and their ebony hair shimmered- moonlight certainly did wonders for them. 

“I can’t decide if I find that sentiment sad or lovely,” they said softly. Hux flushed.

“Sad?”

“It’s lovely because you see colour where most would only see black, but it’s sad, because I feel you see so little colour in your every day life that you desperately seek it everywhere, even in darkness.”

Hux blinked a few times, unsure of how to respond. Amidala’s smile widened. 

“Bittersweet, I think,” they said decidedly. “Lovely, yet sad. Just like the set of your eyes.” 

They leaned forward and took the cloth from Hux’s hand.

“Your nose is running,” Amidala said, and wiped at his nose gently with the fine cloth. Hux sputtered softly. At this degree of closeness, Hux could smell Amidala’s perfume- even over the heady scent of the garden. He could see a shimmer of opalescent dust over their exposed clavicle, see the spattering of beauty marks on their smooth skin.

“That cloth is too fine for that,” he protested, but Amidala laughed softly. 

“It was _made_ for that,” he replied, then handed the cloth back to Hux. 

“It was nice to meet you, Colonel Hux. I should head home and get my beauty sleep for tomorrow’s session.” 

“You don’t need it,” Hux blurted before he could stop himself, and Amidala gave a low, throaty laugh, flattered. 

“If you’re trying to butter me up before negotiations, that’s a good start.”

Their warm brown eyes considered him as they tilted their head, the gold threads in their hair shining in the intricate braids. 

“Perhaps you could continue your buttering up in the morning over breakfast? How does seven sound?” they asked, and Hux flushed even deeper, smiling a bit awkwardly. 

“I’d like that,” he replied agreeably. 

Amidala winked at him, smiling coquettishly. 

“I’ll see you then- I’ll meet you at your suite.”

They gave a small teasing wave that was more of a tantalising waggle of gloved fingers, then turned gracefully and practically floated away, elegant and svelte as a shadow. Hux watched them go, his mouth dry as he watched the sway of their hips. 

His gloved hand still clutched the fine cloth edged in expensive Chandrilan lace. 


End file.
